In recent years, Indian businesses have become increasingly aware of the importance of intellectual property rights. Perhaps this is why the number of trademark applications has steadily increased over time. For this reason, both existing and new businesses should register their trademarks and keep an eye on existing trademark filings related to their business.
To avoid trademark disputes, conduct thorough clearance checks on trademarks (or brand names, trade names, business names, etc.) to ensure that any associated trademark infringement issues can be effectively avoided.
A trademark clearance check should be conducted prior to filing for a trademark. It should include checking all related registered trademarks, trademarks in the process of registration, or even trademarks in use. Alternatively, if you don’t know whether the trademark you are currently using is dispute-free, you can check at a later date.
Trademark Search
A You can search the Indian Trademark Registry database or the website of a third-party service provider to find trademark information.
This process determines whether an envisaged trademark is already being used in connection with specific goods and services. In India, a trademark search can identify similar wordmarks and phonetically similar names in a specific class.
Trademark Database
In India, the Comptroller General of Patent Designs and Trademarks supervises trademark registration and oversight of registered trademarks. The Comptroller General’s website provides access to an electronic trademark search database, which can be used by professionals and non-professionals alike.
In India, the Registrar of trademarks maintains a database of trademark applications including licensed, notified, objected, and expired trademarks. You can find useful information about the trademark search question by searching the trademark database.
Three Categories of Trademark Search in India
- Wordmark – A similar representation of a wordmark
- Vienna Code – To promote similar artistic representations
- Phonetic – A word that is phonetically similar.
In India, How to Conduct a Trademark Search
Search tool allows you to conduct a free trademark search online. Get in touch with us right away if you need more guidance.
Trademark searches can also be conducted on the Indian trademark database link of the Trademark Registry.
Wordmark Search
A wordmark search is performed by selecting the ‘wordmark’ option from the search type options and entering the proposed trademark’s keywords.
Trademark registration is divided into 45 categories. The correct class(es) must be entered in the provided box. One can only search the Indian trademark database using one class at a time.
The wordmark search can also be performed by using prefix methods such as ‘Starts With’, ‘Contains’, or ‘Match With’.
- If you enter a keyword in the “Starts With” option, your search results will list all trademarks that begin with that keyword.
- Similarly, a search using the ‘Contains’ option will display all trademarks that contain the search term.
- When you select ‘Match With’, the results will only include trademarks that match the searched keyword.
Search Results
The search results can be viewed after entering all the needed information. Click on the ‘Start Search’ button once you have completed the search.
Each trademark’s necessary details, such as S. No., matching trademarks, and pictures will appear on the table. In order to display all search results, click the selection box in S. No. View the box at the left top corner for the selected trademark. Click the ‘report’ button to view all of the trademark results in detail after checking the boxes.
Trademarks may be filed if there are no similar trademarks on record after a search is conducted.
Phonetic search
Phonetic searches are similar to wordmark searches, with the exception of the prefix method. Thus, a phonetic search of the trademark can be performed similarly to that described previously.
Vienna code search
Vienna code searches are mostly used to locate similar device marks. You must enter the six-digit Vienna code in the field labelled “Vienna code” and then select the appropriate class. As a result of the search, a result table will display all of the marks that contain the device.
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